Brotherly Bonding
by Fan Of Games
Summary: With a special anniversary arriving, Kcalb seeks to inquiry about a grudge Wodahs holds. Whatever the answer may be, Kcalb will accept it since they are together, leading to a visit to their parents' graves to see them on the anniversary of the brothers' shared birthday.


His fingers tapped the keyboard on his laptop to finish writing a report he prepared for one of the meetings he had to attend in a few days. Scanning his eyes over it when he was done, Kcalb edited it for any mistakes he could make out before opening his email account. Typing a message, he selected a few individuals from among his list of contacts to send it to when his gaze found one name in particular which made him think. Hearing a sound of paperwork being stacked neatly and in an organized fashion, he diverted his attention towards his brother. Wodahs was standing at the desk Etihw used, going over which documents the Goddess had to work on in a specific order due to a strict schedule she had to follow. Etihw wasn't around, and neither of them knew where she'd gone. "You know, Wod," Kcalb spoke up to offer his brother a compliment, "I'm sure you'll be a much better employee than Eti could be if she's found a way to avoid work again. You could take over for her so we could get work done at a better pace than having her on board slowing us down."

The Head Angel smiled at the remark, shutting his eye with a chuckle. "I could, seeing how she hardly leaves any messages for us to know where she may be. I honestly don't even know why she hasn't been fired yet—oh wait, that's right, she's in a position to avoid even that punishment."

The Devil smiled back at him, also chuckling. "If she can avoid that, we'll need to beef up our security." He pointed at the camera they installed to ensure the Goddess would work hard with the positive punishment in place. Although this endeavor was mostly successful, there were still a few occasions when Etihw managed to get away. At least they knew she tried to because she never left any notes behind; eventually they found her being lazy sooner or later. "I checked her schedule before, nothing was listed. I've even contacted the other departments to see if she was at one. They informed me she was nowhere to be found, so I called a squad on patrol and asked if they had time to search for her. We'll get her back at the desk real soon so she can keep working hard at work."

"In due time, brother, in due time," Wodahs responded, continuing what he was doing.

"Indeed," Kcalb agreed, turning back to the laptop to email the contacts he'd chosen to aid in additional editing. His brother was still pretty busy with the work he was doing, so he sent it out to other contacts at once. Noticing a miniature calendar resting on his desk, he picked it up to look at the date on it. A particular box that was circled was the seventeenth. Words in the box indicated today was a special anniversary important to both him and Wodahs. "Hey, Wod, do you mind if I ask you something?" he began to ask, seeking an answer to understand how his brother felt now.

"Sure, I don't mind. What is it, brother?" the Head Angel responded as Kcalb stood up and walked over to him. Gently reaching his hand up to Wodahs' eye patch over the empty socket the right eye had once been in, the Devil tenderly removed it to stare at the wound he once caused.

"Does it still hurt even now?"

"Not at all," Wodahs answered, aware of exactly why his brother was making this inquiry.

"Tell me," Kcalb requested for an honest answer from his brother. "Do you bear a grudge?"

"How would you feel based on my answer?" the Head Angel inquired, worried for Kcalb's feelings on the matter. Kcalb never posed this inquiry before, so it must've been the day they knew.

The Devil simply smiled warmly. "If you bear a grudge, keep it. It'll be my anchor."

"To keep yourself in line, preventing you from turning evil again with the memories."

Kcalb simply patted his brother on the shoulder before returning to his desk, still with that warm smile spread across his face. "You know me very well, Wod, just as I know you well too."

Wodahs smiled. "We are brothers, after all," he remarked. "But what if I said I didn't?"

"Then you would have forgiven me, which would also serve as an anchor for me. However, there could also be a chance that I may wind up forgetting. With that grudge, I'll never forget."

"Then I guess I should keep it then," the Head Angel stated. "But I really do forgive you."

Kcalb smiled. "Thank you, Wodahs." The phone on his desk rang at that moment, causing a slight interruption in this moment of brotherly bonding between them. Picking it up, Kcalb picked it up to answer the caller. "Yes…? I see…Thank you," he stated, putting it on the receiver. "Well, Eti's been located at Apple Park not too long ago, avoiding work once again just as we thought."

"And she's being dragged back by force, I bet."

Kcalb chuckled, getting his coat on. "Knowing her, that'll be most likely." He then turned to face his brother, the warm smile never leaving his face. "Come on, I'd say we deserved a break of our own. We can go visit their graves and purchase some flowers for them on the way over."

Checking his wristwatch to confirm it was time for their lunchbreak, Wodahs took his own coat from the coatrack and put it on. "Yes, that would be nice. It's been a while since we've visited. I've prepared some lunch for us, so we can set up a small picnic there to spend time with them."

…

"You know, Wod, sometimes I think about how this could've all become a reality sooner," he remarked, taking a bite into the sandwich he ate after saying that comment. Chewing it as their eyes rested upon the solitary gravestone in between two others amongst the many other tombstones in the cemetery, he read the two names on it in his mind while remembering them in his mind. He had only known his father whereas Wodahs knew their mother, and the two Nephilim brothers had been apart for so long in their lives without realizing it until the end of the war. Seated at the grave where both of their parents' corpses resided in the form of ashes, he thought about how things back then could've been different. "The angels and demons in our world could have made peace sooner than when the war actually ended to put an end to the conflict for good instead of allowing it to go on. I mean, I'm sure there were a lot of other Nephilim children like us in addition to those few of both sides who respected each other. They might've been secret like us, but if we were known…"

"We could've helped finish the war peacefully, than continue the fighting to preserve it for the sake of that natural law," Wodahs finished for him as the two were nearly done with lunch. "It is indeed quite a shame the war went on pointlessly because of that law, even if other factors were present. I know our mother only cared about having a son who would become the family head due to the loss of our patriarch in the heaven. Our father, angered by her betrayal of him as he was led to believe she really loved him, was justified in how he felt and brought you up under a belief that all angels were evil—just as all angels were brought up to believe demons were evil instead."

"Yes…though not all angels and demons are evil," Kcalb went on, still looking at the pair of names on the tombstone—those of Lavinia, their mother, and Rotsac, their father. "There were certainly a few well-known individuals among both sides back then: Rigatona and Yosaflame, Lost as well as Ciel…I don't remember if Cranber was truly respective of angels or just had no opinion of them. But the first four of those five could understand the bigger picture and didn't hate enemy forces even though they did fight against them for personal obligations instead of hating the other."

"They were different and learned, they could understand the natural law was hurting all of us in the war…" the Head Angel murmured aloud to let this conversation flow. "Our father did as well, up until our mother's act of treason against him simply because she wanted a son—an angelic son—to lead the family. You and he and were then immediately cast out simply for being demons. Although I do wish you weren't so we could've been raised together, I am kind of glad it did occur because you both could've been killed had the marital affair been discovered. Even though we still wound up fighting against each other and the other side we each fought for, we still came together in the end." He turned to face his brother and smiled at him. "I do wish things weren't strict, though at the very least they did eventually work out in the end so we could finally have peace, not strife."

Kcalb turned to give his brother a warm smile, putting an arm around him as they finished eating. "And now look at us, enjoying each other's company in a world where angels and demons can coexist in peaceful harmony without conflict and fears of future wars between our people. The same can't be said for other worlds that want to invade ours like the Land of the Sun, but we have managed to pull through in those cases and I'm positive we can handle other similar threats should any arise. Still, as long as we can preserve the peace between our people in this world, that matters more than anything because we and the other people of this world will stand to protect this value."

Wodahs nodded in full agreement with his brother. "Yes, I could not agree more, brother," he commented, putting his own arm around Kcalb as his cellphone vibrated to indicate somebody was calling or texting him. Removing it from his pocket, he flipped it open and closed his eye. The smile never disappeared, though the Devil knew his brother had another reason to smile. "It would seem Lady Etihw is getting rather impatient with us for once. She claims to have finished some of the work we've left for her to get done. We'll believe it when we actually see it, won't we, Kcalb?"

Kcalb chuckled with him, finding it funny that the Goddess may have actually gotten some work done if she wasn't slacking off anymore. "We will, Wodahs. At least _we_ left her a note saying where we would be, though I suppose she must be starting to think we're the ones slacking. It will not surprise me if she does, but I guess we should head back for now and come back again later."

"Yes, let's," his angelic brother said with a smile as they stood up to slowly approach their parents' tombstone. Kneeling down by flowers they bought in front of it, they shut their eyes and smiled while pressing their hands together to pray for a reunion between Rotsac and Lavinia in the afterlife as they hoped he'd have the heart to forgive her for casting him aside in the past. With the message delivered, the two men stood up and began to amble back towards the cemetery entrance. "You know," Wodahs uttered on the way to make small talk with the Devil, "we did name five of the six well-known combatants in the two armies. Sherbert was the only one we haven't mentioned. Have you heard of him, brother, or was he not well-known to you?" he inquired out of curiosity.

The Devil shut his eyes to recollect his memories from the war. He had known a lot of the military leaders from his army and some from the angels' army. However, many of them were still unknown even to him. "I don't know," he answered honestly as they were approaching the gate to cross over into Gray Village. "There were some I was aware of, a few more recognized than others due to their positions in the armies and how much of an impression they made on me at that time. Yosaflame and Rigatona were the Commander-in-Chiefs of each military and were best friends in the Colored Rainbow World in spite of the fact he was a demon and she was an angel. I know that Lost and Ciel were close since they shared a sibling bond—if I'm correct about that. Cranber was one of the lieutenants closely under my authority even though she was in Yosaflame's regiment."

"So you haven't heard of Sherbert, or knew a bit about him through the others?"

"I believe I know a tiny bit from them," Kcalb said as the two of them walked together. "I do not know a lot about him, though, but I believe he fought against Yosaflame a few times, right?"

"Yes, you are correct, he was an opponent of Yosaflame on several occasions," his brother confirmed that with a brief answer when a demon wearing a black and violet dress that had a gray collar strode up them. From the way this demon sauntered with a whimsically aristocratic gait, the two men guessed this lady was on her way to some sort of party. They didn't know she was coming over to them at first because they saw her looking at a map in her hands on the corner of a sidewalk with some luggage at her side. The fact she did approach suggested she was a visitor to the region for the first time, and it showed as she held the map out to them. Her eyes were closed and her lips formed a smile on her face, muted pink hair in a messy style flowing past her waist right down to her legs. Two horns jutted out from within her hair, reminding them of those horns on Reficul's head. Perhaps she must've been a relative of the other Devil they knew, or maybe not as it was the first time they ever laid eyes on her. It could've gone either way, but they chose not to ask in case their inquiries might've come across as rude. Even so, they could provide some directions to her.

"Excuse me, boys," she stopped them upon walking right in front of where they were going. "Would you gentlemen happen to be from around here?" Evidently she likely did want directions.

"Of course," Kcalb responded to her, stepping forward to offer his help. "Do you need any directions, Miss? If so, we'd be happy to escort you towards the destination you seek or point you in the right direction." The lady smiled, holding the map out to them with a finger on the residential district. Apparently she appeared to be visiting somebody she must've been a friend or relative of.

"Oh, I already figured out this part of town is where I'm heading. I'm looking for a friend's house. Since you're both from the area, would you happen to know her? Her name's Macarona."

"Ah, Macarona," the Head Angel spoke up upon hearing the younger angel's name. "She's a resident of Gray Village, yes. I'm afraid she will not be back until later since she was in another world. We heard she's returning and may arrive early or late into the evening today at the latest."

"Oh, really, is that so?" the lady asked rhetorically, grinning happily since she was getting excited. "Then I'll just wait for her to return then. Which block is her house on so I can meet her?"

"The third block down the street there; it's the first house after an intersection," Kcalb said.

The demonic lady hopped a few times in excitement while clapping her hands. "Oh, thank you, boys! I appreciate it!" Turning around, she started to head back towards her luggage. "Sorry, I've no time for small talk, gentlemen. I've got to go now, but thanks again for the directions!"

"You're quite welcome, Miss!" Wodahs called after her as he and his brother resumed their own walk back towards Blancblack Castle. "I wonder who that might've been, Kcalb. She doesn't appear to be from around here, or maybe she's an associate of Reficul on business or something."

"Maybe," the Devil commented to continue the chitchat. "She does know Macarona, so I'd say she must at least be an acquaintance of sorts with her from somewhere. I do wonder where the two of them met, though I'd rather not pry if it's personal business of theirs. If she's from another world, though, I can only hope this will not lead to yet another foreign invasion anytime soon."

…

 **Such a sweet one-shot, wouldn't you say? Although it's not very long, I believe this is pretty good since I feel I've accomplished what I wanted to do with it. I really like how Kcalb and Wodahs are pretty close as brothers. They may have been enemies in the past, yet they've managed to come together and reconcile any issues between them just as the angels alongside the demons have done too for the Gray Garden. Hopefully they never have to fight again.**

 **I've also included the teaser for my next main project at the end like I said at the end of** _Atonement_ **. I've listed a lot of my ideas on my profile page and in the forums, though it will not be too hard to figure out which one I'm referring to. Look forward to this next story.**

 **As for the parents of Kcalb and Wodahs, Lavinia was the daughter of Latinus as well as Amata, plus she was Aeneas' final wife in Roman mythology. Many suitors vied to marry her, including Rutuli's ruler, Turnus, who acquired Amata's favor. Latinus' father, Faunus, spoke to him in a dream, however, warning him to not give his daughter's hand in marriage to a Latin. As for Rotsac, his name is backwards for Castor, the twin of Pollux in Roman and Greek mythology. These twin brothers shared a mother named Leda, though Castor's father was Sparta's king, Tyndareus, whereas Pollux was born after Zeus raped Leda. They're also related to Helen of Troy and Clytemnestra, their twin sisters/half-sisters. While they became known as Dioskouri together, they were also known as Gemini because Pollex allowed Castor to share his immortality after the latter was killed, thus forming a well-known constellation. You can learn more about these mythological individuals on Wikipedia if you're interested.**

 **I hope you enjoy reading this as I enjoyed writing it.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own the Gray Garden; it's owned by Mogeko.**


End file.
